‘They should investigate restaurants’: Why pay more when this Coles item costs $1?
- Replies 25
A recent incident involving a seemingly innocuous $3.50 surcharge has sparked a heated debate about the fairness of restaurant pricing.
This incident is a reminder to be vigilant about the potential hidden costs that can inflate their dining bills.
A group of Sydney diners were left astounded when they discovered an additional $3.50 charge on their $235.99 dinner bill for chopped chilli, a common condiment in many Asian restaurants.
The group had enjoyed a meal of fried rice, duck, dumplings, and bao, but the unexpected surcharge for a simple ingredient—which they said could be purchased for a mere dollar at Coles—supermarket left a sour taste.
Roberta Crouch, a Professor of Business Management from Flinders University, expressed her disbelief at the surcharge.
She stated that while it's understandable for restaurants to charge extra for premium add-ons like truffles, caviar, or saffron, charging a premium for ‘chopped chilli you can pick up at Coles for a buck’ is simply 'ridiculous'.
‘$3.50 for some chopped chillies? I don’t think so. It’s not even airport prices, right, where you have to pay $10 for a bag of chips?’
The hospitality industry is grappling with rising costs across the board.
According to the latest data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS), costs have surged for food (4.6 per cent), non-alcoholic beverages (4.2 per cent), alcohol (10.7 per cent), and electricity and gas (12.9 per cent).
While Crouch sympathised with the struggles of the hospitality industry and should be ‘cut a bit of slack’, she warned that such surcharges could backfire.
She also thought that things were only going to get ‘crazier’.
‘When people do stuff like that, what they're trying to do is punish you out of asking,’ she said.
‘When organisations use prices like this, they're saying: “We don't want to do this, and if you want us to, we'll make it so expensive for you that you won't do it again.”’
The ABS reports that many Australians feel the cost-of-living crunch and are pulling back on spending.
If consumers feel they are being overcharged and decide to cut back on dining out, it could spell disaster for an industry already on the brink.
'The food and beverage sector, unfortunately, is likely to experience higher rates of business failures over 2024,' Anneke Thompson, Chief Economist at CreditorWatch, warned.
'The business failure rate in this sector is already the highest across all sectors, at 6.7 per cent as of November 2023.'
While Crouch emphasised the importance of restaurants being mindful of what they charge extra, the dissatisfied diner faced unexpected criticism.
In a previous story, an Australian couple were outraged after seeing a ‘ridiculous’ hidden surcharge on their bill.
They were bewildered after learning they had to pay an unusual surcharge for a service they didn’t even request. You can read more about it here.
The incident also highlights the ongoing scrutiny of supermarket pricing.
Supermarkets like Coles and Woolworths are currently under investigation by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission over allegations of price-gouging.
‘After supermarkets, they should investigate Sydney restaurants,’ the Sydneysider wrote on social media.
‘We got charged $3.50 for some chopped chillies.’
Some individuals facing increased expenses doubted the validity of their complaints about a minor additional fee, especially considering their ability to spend $80 on duck and $45 on fried rice.
‘It always amazes me, if things are so tight and money is hard to come by, why whinge when you spend $236 on a meal?’ one person wrote.
‘You can’t be too short of cash if you can afford to spend that amount of money on a meal.’
‘Chooses to eat out, spends $200+, compares that to groceries where people have no choice, either pay or starve,’ another said.
‘[A] little tone deaf.’
Have you encountered similar surcharges when dining out? Share your experiences in the comments below.
This incident is a reminder to be vigilant about the potential hidden costs that can inflate their dining bills.
A group of Sydney diners were left astounded when they discovered an additional $3.50 charge on their $235.99 dinner bill for chopped chilli, a common condiment in many Asian restaurants.
The group had enjoyed a meal of fried rice, duck, dumplings, and bao, but the unexpected surcharge for a simple ingredient—which they said could be purchased for a mere dollar at Coles—supermarket left a sour taste.
A group was surprised by the surcharge for chopped chilli. Credit: @privatepolicy85 / Reddit
Roberta Crouch, a Professor of Business Management from Flinders University, expressed her disbelief at the surcharge.
She stated that while it's understandable for restaurants to charge extra for premium add-ons like truffles, caviar, or saffron, charging a premium for ‘chopped chilli you can pick up at Coles for a buck’ is simply 'ridiculous'.
‘$3.50 for some chopped chillies? I don’t think so. It’s not even airport prices, right, where you have to pay $10 for a bag of chips?’
The hospitality industry is grappling with rising costs across the board.
According to the latest data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS), costs have surged for food (4.6 per cent), non-alcoholic beverages (4.2 per cent), alcohol (10.7 per cent), and electricity and gas (12.9 per cent).
While Crouch sympathised with the struggles of the hospitality industry and should be ‘cut a bit of slack’, she warned that such surcharges could backfire.
She also thought that things were only going to get ‘crazier’.
‘When people do stuff like that, what they're trying to do is punish you out of asking,’ she said.
‘When organisations use prices like this, they're saying: “We don't want to do this, and if you want us to, we'll make it so expensive for you that you won't do it again.”’
The ABS reports that many Australians feel the cost-of-living crunch and are pulling back on spending.
If consumers feel they are being overcharged and decide to cut back on dining out, it could spell disaster for an industry already on the brink.
'The food and beverage sector, unfortunately, is likely to experience higher rates of business failures over 2024,' Anneke Thompson, Chief Economist at CreditorWatch, warned.
'The business failure rate in this sector is already the highest across all sectors, at 6.7 per cent as of November 2023.'
While Crouch emphasised the importance of restaurants being mindful of what they charge extra, the dissatisfied diner faced unexpected criticism.
In a previous story, an Australian couple were outraged after seeing a ‘ridiculous’ hidden surcharge on their bill.
They were bewildered after learning they had to pay an unusual surcharge for a service they didn’t even request. You can read more about it here.
The incident also highlights the ongoing scrutiny of supermarket pricing.
Supermarkets like Coles and Woolworths are currently under investigation by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission over allegations of price-gouging.
‘After supermarkets, they should investigate Sydney restaurants,’ the Sydneysider wrote on social media.
‘We got charged $3.50 for some chopped chillies.’
Some individuals facing increased expenses doubted the validity of their complaints about a minor additional fee, especially considering their ability to spend $80 on duck and $45 on fried rice.
‘It always amazes me, if things are so tight and money is hard to come by, why whinge when you spend $236 on a meal?’ one person wrote.
‘You can’t be too short of cash if you can afford to spend that amount of money on a meal.’
‘Chooses to eat out, spends $200+, compares that to groceries where people have no choice, either pay or starve,’ another said.
‘[A] little tone deaf.’
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